The Irish standard., 1887-01-29
How the Asiatic Caste Difficulty Shows
Itself 1T the Wells Which Are So High
II Priced That Some Of Thom Arc
Worshiped BY tho Hindoos.

good weight to pull up; and the women
have to take great care that the vessel
which comes up with swinging motion
does not strike against the sides Of the
well, as the least stroke would dasf
it to pieces. Sometimes one or two
beams are thrown across the vel
near the edge, whereon women rest one
of their feet, throwing on it the weight Of
their whole body. Of course must be un
derstood to describe here the primitive
wells from which water is drawn solely by
the hand. Very often you may see fifteer
or twenty women assembled at well, who
after having great deal Of gossiping, e
home in groups.
The caste difficulty shows itself as prom
inently at the well as elsewhere. Womer
of different castles must not touch eact
others vessels. Hindoos of various sects
will not take water to drink from each 9th.
or. In some parts, at the wells where both
men and women draw water, the Brahmins
will use brass or copper vessels belonging
to persons Of other castles after scrubbing
them well with dust and water and wash
ing them. A leather bag need only be
washed, for, having come originally from
the tanner, who is Of very low caste, no fur.
ther deflement can happen to it. But
strict Hindoos, whether Brahmins or 9th
ers, will never drink water that has been
drawn in leather bag, nor use it for ablu
tions. In villages where there is but one
well, persons Of low caste and out-castes
draw WAGER on one side Of it, and when
they are gone Brahmins and other superior
castles come and draw water from the othes
side. Where there are many wells in a
village it is usual to set apart special one
of1 1arx,
Wells are naturally greatly priced in the
arid, hot parts of India, and many Hindoos
earn great renown by making them where
they are much needed. Some religious
people seek for merit in the construction
other places for the purpose Of supplying
them for irrigating their fields. A large we'll
built of strong masonry, with circular,
white, smooth platform round it for people
to sit on when they draw or drink water,
costs from 1900 or 5000 rupees. Even the
wants Of the brute creation are not over
looked by the Hindoos. They make reser.
voirs of strong masonry, about five or siz
yards long and yard wide, adjoining q
well, and in the hot season these are al
ways kept filed with water. Returning
from pasture or from the fields in the fore
noon for repose, and retiring at dusk fol-
the night, whole droves Of COWS, bullocks,
buffaloes and goats slake their thirst here.
Landowners and wealthy men vie with
each other in constructing these wells and
reservoirs; and Princes sometimes initiate
the example of their opulent subjects. The
average cost Of an ordinary well has been
estimated to be about 800 or 400 rupees.
Wells have been objects of great endear
ment with some villagers. Not satisfied
with wasting time and money in their own
and their children's marriages and in those
Of idols and trees, they sometimes marry
wells with great pomp and ceremony. Ir
some parts of the country wells are wor
SHIPPED, and votive offerings are often seer
lying near them.
Wells in India were at one time put to the
most dreadful uses. Wayfarers and others
were murdered and their bodies thrown
into them. Criminals were often thrown
down them, and even at this day many
horrid deeds are done at the wells in out-of
the-way parts Of India.
Jung Bahadur, Of Nepal, used to toll 8
remarkable story about well. A not un-
common mode of execution in Nepal is to
throw the defender down well. 1t occur
red to young Jung, who was bred up
amidst the intrigues and plots and counter
plots Of the Nepalese court, that it was the
fault Of the victim If he did not come up
again alive and unhurt; and, in order to
test the matter and also to be prepared for
any case Of future emergency, he hepracticed
the art Of jumping down wells. By and
1y it actually happened that Jung was SEN
fenced by his Prince to this punishment.
Undismayed, he begged one last favor OF
his Sovereign-that he might be permitted
70 jump in. So reasonable request was
at once granted. Surrounded by large
number Of people, the Prince himself
forming one Of the sightseers, Jung went
to well, where, taking OF his superfluous
clothes, he crossed his legs, jumped boldly
down and in q moment was lost to view OF
the Prince and his courtiers, who, assured
Of the doom Of their victim by the dull
splash, returned to the palace. The sup.
posed drowned man, however, was quite
safe and sound, clinging to the sides Of the
well, which he knew beforehand to be
plentifully provided with chinks and cram
nies. At midnight, his friends, who had
been previously rehearsed in their part,
came and rescued him from his uncomfort-
able position. After awhile, when affairs
in the Nepalese court took q favorable turn
for him, Jung Bahadur allowed his friends
to resuscitate him, and this adventure did
much to restore the future Prime Minister
Of Nepal to the favor of his Sovereign.
An Heiress with q Cool Head.
milwaukee Sentinel